With the Detroit Lions’ 2021 season in the books, it’s time to hand out our annual awards.
Offensive player of the year:
Offensive tackle Penei Sewell
This choice isn’t as bold as it might seem. The first-round draft pick overcame some early struggles and was a model of consistent excellence throughout the remainder of the campaign.
Sewell handled some difficult challenges, none bigger than being asked to change position upon his arrival to Detroit, only to be flipped back to the left side after Taylor Decker needed surgery to repair a broken finger days before the start of the season.
In Week’s 4 and 5, Sewell allowed four sacks, including two that resulted in quarterback Jared Goff losing a fumble. But from that point on, the young tackle allowed just one sack and only four hits on the quarterback, while consistently dominating as a run blocker. The Lions pushed the boundaries with his athleticism on second-level and perimeter blocks and he routinely answered the call.
To the surprise of many, he didn’t flinch when he moved back to the right side once Decker returned. And Sewell’s toughness shouldn’t go unrecognized as he fought through ankle and shoulder injuries without a decline in his performance. The only game he missed was due to COVID.
Defensive player of the year:
Cornerback Amani Oruwariye
This was a close call, but Oruwariye’s second-half improvements pushed him slightly ahead of outside linebacker Charles Harris and safety Tracy Walker in the eyes of this one-man committee.
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Obviously, the first things that pops out for Oruwariye is the interceptions. After snagging three in his first 25 professional games, he finished third in the NFL with six in 14 starts this season.
Most of the early ones came from being in the right place at the right time. There’s certainly some luck to that, with overthrows and deflections, but there’s also something to be said about good positioning and capitalizing on opportunities. And down the stretch, the third-year corner was more of a playmaker, undercutting and jumping routes to keep the turnover train rolling.
Overall, when targeted in coverage, opposing quarterbacks completed fewer than 60% of their throws against Oruwariye. That despite often drawing the toughest assignment. The next step in his development will be building on his playmaking and trimming the penalties (eight) and missed tackles (11).
Special teams player of the year:
Jack Fox
It’s difficult to deny Fox for a second consecutive year. Despite the Lions having a slew of good coverage players — a group that includes Jalen Reeves-Maybin, Jason Cabinda, C.J. Moore, Josh Woods and Anthony Pittman — the punter’s consistent performance a year after setting franchise records makes him an easy choice.
The big-legged Fox averaged 49.2 yards per punt this year, a slight uptick from a year ago, while slightly reducing his touchback percentage by showing better touch kicking into a short field.
Fox’s net average, the most important stat for the position, took a bit of a hit in 2021. That’s because return yardage was up and he was a factor, occasionally driving the ball too far for his coverage to properly set up.
Finally, even though Fox is a weapon because of his leg, his arm played a supporting role this season. The Lions were aggressive, attempting four fake punts, with Fox throwing it three times. He completed the first two, putting good zip on the ball, and showed impressive touch lofting a pass over a defender on the third, but it unfortunately ended up going through the hands of his intended target.
Offensive rookie of the year: Sewell
There’s not much to add to what was already said about Sewell above, but his margin for this honor narrowed significantly in the second half of the season. That’s not because of anything Sewell did wrong, but because of how receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown’s surged across the finish line. More on that in a bit.
Defensive rookie of the year:
Cornerback Jerry Jacobs
The Lions used a second-, two third- and a fourth-round draft pick on defensive prospects, three of which saw 396 or more snaps in 2021. That group of players is expected to make up a significant part of the foundation on that side of the ball, but in terms of first-year performance, Jacobs, the undrafted cornerback out of Arkansas, gets the nod just ahead of 330-pound defensive lineman Alim McNeill.
Jacobs earned a roster spot with a strong showing in training camp, but it’s fair to say he wasn’t expected to see much playing time beyond a small special teams role. That changed when Jeff Okudah and Ifeatu Melifonwu went down with early season injuries and converted safety Bobby Price struggled, necessitating a change midway through Week 4.
While the film will show plenty of rookie moments, Jacobs far exceeded reasonable expectations and was a more consistent player than McNeill. Targeted 43 times in coverage, Jacobs allowed 64.3% to be completed for 347 yards and one touchdown, while breaking up seven passes and forcing a fumble.
A strong open-field tackler not afraid to mix it up in run support, Jacobs unfortunately saw his debut season end early due to a torn ACL. Still, he showed enough in 13 games (nine starts) and more than 600 defensive and special teams snaps to be recognized.
Assistant coach of the year:
Offensive line coach Hank Fraley
Another repeat winner from a year ago, the job Fraley did with his position group is nothing short of remarkable. Expectations for the offensive line were sky-high following the addition of Sewell in the draft, but the projected starting five never lined up together once in the regular season.
Decker missed the first eight games, Pro Bowl center Frank Ragnow was lost for the year in Week 4, and guards Jonah Jackson and Halapoulivaati Vaitai also missed starts. The sheer number of combinations the Lions utilized up front is enough to make your head spin.
On top of that, the team’s top backups coming into the offseason, Tyrell Crosby and Logan Stenberg, also suffered season-ending injuries. Crosby didn’t even make it to the regular season, while Stenberg played just four offensive snaps before landing on the shelf. That left Fraley to lean on a collective light on pro experience — Evan Brown, converted defensive lineman Matt Nelson and undrafted rookies Tommy Kraemer and Evan McCollum — to get the job done.
Despite all that, the Lions finished in the middle of the pack in sacks and pass-rush pressure allowed, while posting the team’s most-efficient rushing performance in more than two decades. That’s a testament to Fraley’s abilities to prepare his players and adjust to challenging circumstances.
Breakout player: Wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown
It’s admittedly awkward to squeeze a rookie into this slot, but hear me out. Even after entering the season with a clear path to playing time, production expectations for the fourth-round pick were modest.
And through the team’s first 11 games, those expectations tracked with reality. During that stretch he was averaging 32 receiving yards per game, while being held without a touchdown. He was just as likely to finish a matchup with one reception as he was six.
That’s not to say anyone was unhappy with the player. Coaches routinely praised him, particularly his unselfishness as a blocker, while coach Dan Campbell openly placed an emphasis on getting St. Brown more involved after the bye.
After catching four passes the first three contests after the bye, St. Brown suddenly caught fire. He hauled in at least eight balls each of the final six games, becoming the first player in franchise history, and the first rookie in NFL history, to accomplish that feat.
He also added versatility as the season progressed, going from primarily operating out of the slot to playing more out wide and occasionally lining up in the backfield.
His late-season sprint allowed the USC product to rewrite Detroit’s record books, finishing with the most receptions (90) and receiving yards (912) for a Lions rookie.
Most improved player:
Outside linebacker Charles Harris
The Lions were able to lure Harris to Detroit with a fully guaranteed contract, but the one-year, $1.75 million deal was more about opportunity than expectations for the former first-rounder.
After failing to live up to his draft position in Miami, Harris’ reputation rehab started with improved efficiency playing in a rotational role for Atlanta last year. And with workhorses Romeo Okwara and Trey Flowers ahead of him on the depth chart, he appeared set for similar usage in Detroit.
Instead, Flowers battled knee issues all season and Okwara tore his Achilles in Week 4, opening the door for Harris to play far more than he had previously in his career. He ended up seeing nearly 800 snaps of work, more than any non-defensive back. And with that playing time, he responded with 7.5 sacks and 52 total quarterback pressures, more than double anyone on the roster and not far off what Okwara and Flowers had produced in recent seasons.
The sack production was somewhat inconsistent, coming in two short bursts, and there were limitations against the run and in coverage, but Harris exceeded all expectations and earned himself a bigger pay day his next trip through free agency.
Biggest disappointment:
Defensive lineman Michael Brockers
Detroit’s interior pass rush has been an issue for years. Some of that was schematic under former coach Matt Patricia, but the inability to disrupt the pocket has allowed opposing quarterbacks to comfortably progress through their reads and make unaffected throws.
The team invested heavily in overhauling the position last offseason, starting with a trade for Brockers, a former first-round pick and nine-year veteran who had pieced together a solid career playing for the Rams.
The move was sold as having a dual purpose. Brockers was not only expected to port over his on-field production, but also serve as a veteran leader for a group that would add add two early-round rookies in the draft.
There’s no complaints about Brockers’ leadership and effort, but his on-field performance was a major letdown. After averaging more than 30 quarterback pressures the past two seasons in Los Angeles, he finished this year with 1.0 sack, no quarterback hits and a paltry five hurries.
It’s always been safe to assume Aaron Donald makes everyone around him better, but Brockers’ decline between 2020 and 2021 makes the case.
Performance of the year:
Amon-Ra St. Brown, Week 17
Three Lions earned NFC player of the week honors for their performances this season, and while St. Brown’s outing in the finale wasn’t one of them, it was the best by any Detroit player, in our opinion.
The statistics are obvious. He led the way for the offense, catching eight passes for 109 yards and a touchdown. The score, a short 2-yarder on a fourth down, capped a series where he hauled in three other passes, all for first downs.
And late in the game, with the Lions trailing and needed a touchdown, St. Brown came up with the drive’s biggest play, catching a 38-yarder across the middle to break into Packers territory.
But it’s the little stuff, which doesn’t show up in the box score, that was the cherry on the sundae. On an early-game trick play, St. Brown’s success as a ball carrier in previous weeks caused the defense to funnel to him after taking a handoff. That allowed Kalif Raymond to get wide open down the sideline while St. Brown pitched the ball back to Tom Kennedy to deliver the pass.
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St. Brown also took a reverse and pitched it back to Goff on a second trick play that resulted in another long touchdown. And before his own, aforementioned score, St. Brown took a direct snap and handed it off to Craig Reynolds for a 6-yard gain down the 1-yard line.
The performance encompassed St. Brown’s overall impact on defenses, directly contributing to 28 of the team’s season-high 37 points.
Play of the year:
Game-winning touchdown pass vs. Minnesota
Clear some space on the shelf, St. Brown, we’ve got one more award for you.
While the Lions dialed up some creative pass designs and successfully executed a number of fakes on special teams, nothing meant more to the season than the play that netted Detroit its first win of the year.
Whispers of a potentially winless campaign were picking up when the Vikings came to town in early December. The Lions jumped out to a two-touchdown led at the half, but watched it evaporate as the Vikings took a four-point lead on a Justin Jefferson touchdown catch with 1:50 remaining.
But Goff led a response, methodically driving Detroit down the field. With four seconds remaining, on the 14th play of the possession, the quarterback fired a pass to St. Brown just across the goal line for the victory, sending the home crowd and the Lions sideline into a frenzy.
jdrogers@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @Justin_Rogers